CHICAGO WHITE SOX NOTES:
WHITE SOX AT A GLANCE
The Chicago White Sox continue a six-game trip this afternoon with the opener of a three-game series at Minnesota.
RHP Dylan Cease, who is 10-4 with a 1.74 ERA (18 ER/93.1 IP) and 122 strikeouts over his last 17 road starts dating back to 9/17/21, is scheduled to start for the White Sox.
The Sox opened the trip by dropping two of three games at Pittsburgh, including 1-0 loss in yesterday’s finale … they scored 20 runs in the first two games of the series.
Following this three-game series, the White Sox return home for six games vs. Baltimore (4/14-16) and Philadelphia (4/17-19).
The Sox went 1-2 on their first homestand vs. San Francisco (4/3-6) after opening the season by splitting four games at Houston from 3/30-4/2.
TODAY’S STORYLINES
The White Sox are playing their only series vs. an American League Central opponent in April.
Dylan Cease went 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA (14.0 IP), 15 strikeouts and a .042 average (2-48) in two starts against the Twins in 2022.
Cease allowed one hit with eight strikeouts over 7.0 scoreless IP on 7/17/22 at Target Field, and threw a complete-game, one-hitter with seven strikeouts on 9/3/22 at Guaranteed Rate Field, no-hitting the Twins before Luis Arráez singled with two outs in the ninth inning.
The Sox have recorded 10-plus hits in eight of their first 10 games this season … by comparison, they did not collect their eighth 10-hit game last season until 5/14, the 32nd game.
The White Sox are hitting .292/.346/.469 (76-260) through seven road games this season, collecting 10-plus hits six times.
The Sox have allowed six runs over the last two games, compared to 44 in the previous four.
The White Sox are 13-13 in stolen-base attempts this season.
Jake Burger celebrates his 27th birthday today.
YESTERDAY’S RECAP
The White Sox were limited to six hits in a 1-0 loss at Pittsburgh in the deciding game of the series.
Michael Kopech suffered the loss despite allowing one run on two hits with fi ve strikeouts over 6.0 IP for the Sox second quality start of the season and first since Dylan Cease on Opening Day.
Jimmy Lambert and Jake Diekman each threw 1.0 IP in relief to complete the two-hitter.
Gavin Sheets collected three of Chicago’s six hits … the Sox went 0-4 with RISP and left six runners on base as they suffered their first 1-0 loss since 8/11/21 at Minnesota.
CEASE AND DESTROY
Dylan Cease, who finished second in the American League Cy Young Award voting last season, has gone 11-6 with a 1.51 ERA (25 ER/148.2 IP) and 174 strikeouts over his last 25 starts dating to 5/29/22.
During that stretch, Cease leads MLB in ERA and opponents average (.167) … he has allowed one or no earned runs in 20 of the 25 starts.
NEAR NO˨NO
A look back at Dylan Cease’s attempt at throwing the 21st no-hitter in White Sox history on 9/3/22 vs. Minnesota.
Second pitcher in White Sox history to lose a no-hitter with two outs in the ninth, joining Ken Brett on 5/26/76 vs. California (Elias/STATS) … Brett lost his no-hit bid on Jerry Remy’s infield single and went on to lose the game, 1-0, in 10 innings (he threw 9.1 IP).
First Sox pitcher to record a complete-game one-hitter while losing his no-hit bid in the ninth since Dennis Lamp on 8/25/1981 at Milwaukee.
First MLB pitcher since Pete Alexander in 1915 to record four games in a season with 6.0-plus shutout IP and no more than one hit allowed.
St. Louis’ Miles Mikolas also lost his no-hit bid with out one remaining on 6/14/22 vs. Pittsburgh.
SOX TRADE RUIZ TO D’BACKS
Chicago yesterday traded RHP José Ruiz to Arizona in exchange for cash considerations … Ruiz was DFA on Friday after allowing nine runs in 3.2 IP over four relief appearances in 2023.
SOUTHSIDE HITMEN
The White Sox lead the American League in doubles (26) and rank among the leaders in extra-base hits (2nd, 36), total bases (2nd, 161), average (3rd, .287), OPS (4th, .780), on-base percentage (4th, .340), and slugging (4th, .440).
The Sox offense after 10 games in 2023 and 2022:
Year AVG AB R R/G H 2B HR SB OBP SLG OPS
2023 .287 366 52 5.2 105 26 10 13 .340 .440 .780
2022 .228 294 38 4.2 67 14 10 9 .276 .384 .661
WHITE SOX VS. MINNESOTA TWINS
The White Sox and Twins play 13 times in 2023, down from 18-plus each full season from 2001-22 (not including 2020).
The Sox went 9-10 in the 2022 season series (4-6 at Target Field), winning nine of the last 14 games after losing the first five … they batted .261/.312/.414 with 4.38 ERA and outscored the Twins, 91-87.
The White Sox are 27-21 vs. Minnesota since the start of the 2020 season after going 20-37 from 2017-19.
SOX ON TARGET
Some notable White Sox career numbers at Target Field:
Andrew Benintendi: .385/.431/.670 (35-91) with seven home runs and 20 RBI in 22 games
Tim Anderson: .330/.367/.472 (58-176) slash line with 34 runs scored in 43 games.
Yoán Moncada: .306/.374/.523 (34-111) with 13 doubles and 20 runs scored in 27 games.
HOME AWAY FROM HOME
The White Sox are 47-41 (.534) on the road since the start of the 2022 season, the fi fth-best winning percentage in the American League.
The Sox rank third in the AL during that span with a 3.60 ERA (304 ER/760.2 IP), trailing Houston (3.07) and Cleveland (3.59).
NO RISP, NO REWARD
The White Sox rank fourth in the American League with a
.302 (32-106) average with runners in scoring position … they
lead the AL in hits and at-bats with RISP.
The Sox are hitting .385/.421/.519 (20-52) with RISP over the
last fi ve games despite going 0-4 on Sunday at Pittsburgh.
SOUTHPAW SUCCESS
The White Sox are batting .275/.340/.446 vs. left-handed pitching since the start of the 2019 season … during that span, the Sox lead MLB in average, rank second in on-base percentage OPS (.786) and fifth in slugging.
Tim Anderson owns a .353/.383/.564 (141-399) slash line vs. LHP since 2019, while Hanser Alberto is hitting .344/.363/.484 (170-494) … during that span, Anderson and Alberto rank 1-2 in MLB in average vs. LHP.
Luis Robert Jr. is a career .359/.409/.636 (70-195) hitter vs. lefties … Jake Burger owns a .617 slugging percentage vs. LHP.
ELVIS BECOMES MR. 2,000
Elvis Andrus became the 290th player in MLB history to record 2,000 hits on Wednesday with a single off Logan Webb.
Andrus ranks fourth among active players with 2,002 hits, trailing only Miguel Cabrera (3,091), Joey Votto (2,093) and Nelson Cruz (2,019) … he has recorded 1,743 hits with Texas, 205 with Oakland and 54 with the White Sox
STARTER #84 DYLAN CEASE RHP
CEASE AT A GLANCE
Is scheduled to make his third start of the season, second on the road and first vs. the Minnesota Twins.
Has struck out 18 batters while allowing just three hits over his first two starts of 2023, becoming the first pitcher in White Sox history to strike out at least 18 while allowing three hits or less in his first two starts of a season.
Has not allowed a hit to a left-handed batter this season (0-15) while opponents are hitless against his four-seam fastball.
Established career bests last season in ERA (2.20), strikeouts (227), wins (14), IP (184.0), WHIP (1.11) and opponents average (.190).
Is approaching the following career milestones: four strikeouts for 600, eight games/starts for 100, 7.2 IP for 500.0 and three wins for 40.
Ranks third in MLB since 2021 in SO/9.0 IP (11.74) and strikeouts (471) and seventh in opponents average (.202).
Was the 2022 AL Cy Young Award runner up and has been named American League Pitcher of the month twice in his career (June and July 2022).
LAST START
Earned the win on 4/5 vs. San Francisco, allowing one run on one hit with five walks and eight strikeouts … allowed a solo home run to J.D. Davis in the second inning … retired nine of the last 11 batters faced.
Departed the game in the sixth with the White Sox leading, 4-1 … threw 99 pitches (52 strikes) … the Sox would go on to win, 7-3.
Owned a 59.1 first-strike percentage and 14.1 swinging-strike percentage (17 swing and misses) vs. 22 batters … threw 41 sliders (86.1 mph avg; 87.8 mph max), 34 four-seam fastballs (95.3 avg; 96.7 max), 16 knuckle curveballs (78.5 avg; 81.8 max) and eight changeups (78.1 avg; 80.2 max).
THE 2023 OPENER
Was the 70th pitcher and 41st right-hander to start on Opening Day for the White Sox.
Became the first White Sox to start OD following a Top 2 Cy Young finish since Jack McDowell in 1994 … McDowell won the American League Cy Young in 1993.
Tied a franchise OD record with 10 strikeouts (also McDowell in 1991).
Joined Walter Johnson (1916), Mike Mussina (1998) and Jared Weaver (2012) as the only pitchers in MLB history to record 10-plus strikeouts and no walks on OD.
ON THE ROAD AGAIN
Is 7-3 with a 1.61 ERA (13 ER/72.2 IP) in his last 13 road starts, 10-4 with a 1.74 ERA (18 ER/93.1 IP) over his last 17 and 12-5 with a 2.15 ERA (29 ER/121.1 IP) in his last 22.
Ranks among MLB road leaders since 7/11/21 in ERA (4th, 2.15), strikeouts (5th, 160) and wins (T6th, 12).
LIGHTS OUT IN THE SUN
Is 9-4 with a 1.46 ERA (18 ER/111.1 IP), .176 (70-397) opponents average and 139 strikeouts (11.24 per 9.0 IP) over 19 day starts since the start of last season.
His 1.46 ERA in day games since 2022 is the fourth-lowest in baseball and lowest among starters with at least 10 starts during the day.
O’ SLIDER SLIDE
Posted a run value of -36 on his slider in 2022, the best mark among all pitchers’ pitch types in baseball … the Angels’ Shohei Ohtani’s sweeper and Miami’s Sandy Alcantara’s changeup ranked second with a -25 mark.
VS. MINNESOTA TWINS || A.L. CENTRAL
Is scheduled to make his 10th career start against the Twins and third at Target Field.
Has allowed three runs or less in six of his nine career starts against Minnesota.
Went 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA (0 ER/16.0 IP), .042 (2-48) and 15 strikeouts in two starts vs. the Twins last season … threw a complete-game, one-hitter with seven strikeouts on 9/3/22 at Guaranteed Rate Field, no-hitting the Twins before LuisArráez singled with two outs in the ninth inning.
Is 21-11 with a 3.07 ERA (80 ER/234.1 IP), .231 (203-880) and 265 strikeouts in 43 career starts vs. the American League Central.
TOMORROW’S STARTER: RHP LANCE LYNN
RHP Lance Lynn (0-1, 9.00) is scheduled to make his third start of the season, second on the road and first vs. the Minnesota Twins.
Suffered the loss in his last start on 4/6 vs. San Francisco, allowing eight runs on nine hits (three home runs) with three walks and five strikeouts over 4.1 IP.
Is 2-2 with a 4.50 ERA (22 ER/44.0 IP) in eight career starts against the Twins … has gone 0-2 with a 9.00 ERA (15 ER/15.0 IP) in his last three starts.
MINNESOTA TWINS NOTES:
THE TWINS: Opened their 63rd season in Minnesota and 14th at Target Field with a three- game series win against the Astros over the weekend, winning the first two and losing the finale yesterday afternoon…today they will begin a three-game series against the White Sox through Wednesday afternoon.
EASTER SUNDAY, NOT SO FUNDAY: The Twins lost to the Astros yesterday afternoon at Target Field by a score of 5-1…Tyler Mahle (1-1) was the starter and loser, allowing four runs on eight hits in 6.0 innings pitched, with one walk and six strikeouts…the offense recorded just two hits, one being a single from Byron Buxton and one being an RBI-double from Donovan Solano… the Twins are now 2-1-0 in series play this season, 1-0-0 at home and 1-1-0 on the road.
TWINS AND SOX: Twins and White Sox are playing the first of 13 meetings this season…after this three-game series, their next series will be in three games from May 2-4 at Guaranteed Rate Field…the Twins went 10-9 against Chicago in 2022, going 6-4 at Target Field and 4-5 at Guaranteed Rate Field…Twins went 1-3 in their final four games of last season.
Since 2015, the Twins have gone 78-65 against the Sox, their most wins against any opponent in that span.
Twins pitchers posted a 2.66 ERA (61.0 IP, 18 ER) with a slashline of .204/.246/.302 in their last seven games against the White Sox.
Joey Gallo is hitting .324 (11-for-34) with four home runs, seven walks, and a 1.115 OPS in his last nine games vs. the Sox.
MEN IN THE MIDDLE: Through nine games, Twins starting pitchers have combined to post a 2.24 ERA (52.1 IP, 13 ER), with 14 walks, 68 strikeouts, while holding batters to a slashline of .185/.246/.304…below are their ranks among all starting staffs in Major League Baseball:
ERA BAA FIP WHIP HITS ALLOWED K’s OPS
TB – 1.90 MIN – .185 TB – 2.00 MIN – 0.92 MIN – 34 MIN – 68 TB – .507
MIN – 2.24 TB – .199 MIN – 2.92 TB – 0.92 MIA – 35 TB – 60 MIN – .551
NYY – 3.27 MIA – .201 NYY – 3.24 LAD – 1.09 NYY – 36 CWS – 57 NYY – .624
KC – 3.29 NYY – .224 HOU – 3.29 SF – 1.10 TB – 37 TEX – 55 MIA – .625
SEA – 3.35 LAA – .225 KC – 3.31 NYY – 1.14 2 tied – 40 HOU – 55 SEA – .658
CENTRAL HEATING: The Twins are playing a series against an AL Central opponent for the second time this season after sweeping the Royals in three games at Kauffman Stadium from March 30-April 2…they will play their division for just 52 games this season, compared to the previous 76 times…the Twins went 39-37 against the AL Central last season, with pitchers posting a 3.55 ERA, their lowest of an opposing division.
CLUTCH CITY: Twins are hitting .328 (22-for-67) with runners in scoring position, tied for third best in baseball with Chicago-NL, trailing Tampa Bay (.317) and Arizona (.333)…additionally, they are hitting .344 (11-for-32) with RISP and two outs, fourth best in baseball.
Notable individual with RISP: Ryan Jeffers is 2-for-3, Joey Gallo is 2-for-4, Donovan Solano is 3-for-5, Christian Vázquez is 3-for-5, Trevor Larnach is 4-for-9, Jose Miranda is 3-for-9 and Kyle Farmer is 3-for-7.
FARMERS ONLY: Kyle Farmer has seven hits in 22 at-bats this season (.315), including five hits in his last nine at-bats…he has seven RBI this season, tied with Joey Gallo for teamlead…Farmer was acquired via trade with Cincinnati on November 18, 2022 in exchange for right-handed pitcher Casey Legumina.
THE TRUTH ON TREVOR: Despite going 0-for-3 yesterday, Trevor Larnach drew a walk and has now reached base in all nine games to start the season, matching his career-best streak also done from May 23-June 2, 2021; has a .439 on-base percentage during his current run…his 11 hits on the season are tied with Byron Buxton for team-lead…additionally, he leads the club in walks (7)…his .439 on-base percentage ranks 10th in the American League.
DONNIE BARRELS: Donovan Solano has hit safely in four straight games, hitting .357 (5-for- 14) with two walks, a .438 on-base percentage and an .866 OPS in that span…he was signed by the Twins to a one-year contract on February 23.
C4-EVER MINNESOTA: Carlos Correa has reached safely in seven of eight games played this season, recording six hits with three walks…on January 11, Carlos Correa signed a six-year guaranteed contract through the 2028 season…the deal includes four team options covering the 2029 through 2032 campaigns, each of which can automatically vest based on performance in the previous season…the 28-year-old hit .291 (152-for-522) with 24 doubles, one triple, 22 home runs, 64 RBI, 70 runs scored, 61 walks, a .366 on-base percentage and an .834 OPS in 136 games for the Twins last season…he led all MLB shortstops in OPS (.834), while ranking second among that same group in slugging percentage (.467) and on-base percentage (.366), and third in batting average (.291) and RC/27 (5.84)…Correa also hit .310 (79-for-255) with an .880 OPS in 67 home games, the sixth-highest home average in the AL and 10th best in baseball; it was also the eighth-best home average in Target Field history (since 2010)…after the season, Correa was named winner of the Most Valuable Twin Award, the Bob Allison Award for leadership, the Jim Kaat Award as Twins Defensive Player of the Year, the Mike Augustin “Media Good Guy” Award and the Carl R. Pohlad Outstanding Community Service Award.
THIS AND THAT:
Through nine games, the Twins average time of game is 2:26 minutes, the fastest in baseball…last season, the Twins average time of game was 3:07, a difference of 41 minutes to this season.
Twins catchers have combined to hit .321 (9-for-28) with six walks and a .441 on-base percentage.
Twins have committed just three errors on the season, tied for fifth fewest in baseball.
On this day in 1982, the Twins acquired reliever Ron Davis and minor leaguers Greg Gagne and Paul Boris from New York-AL, in exchange for infielder Roy Smalley and pitcher Gary Serum…Davis ranks fifth on Twins all-time saves list with 108 while Gagne was inducted into the Twins Hall of Fame in 2010.
Low-A Fort Myers hitting coach Rayden Sierra is celebrating his 28th birthday today…he shares a birthday with Do-Hyoung Park, who celebrated his birthday early yesterday by spotting a Dennis Santana and Kyle Lohse jersey in the Thomson Reuters Champions Club.
STARTING PITCHER – KENTA MAEDA 18
Facing Chicago-AL for the sixth time in his career, first time since June 29, 2021…is 2-1, 5.47 ERA (24.2 IP, 15 ER), with nine walks and 24 strikeouts in five starts against the White Sox.
Second start of the year, first at home…will be his 13th start at Target Field.
Entering his fourth season with the Twins after being traded, along with Jair Carmargo, from Los Angeles-NL in exchange for Brusdar Graterol and Luke Raley.
CAREER NOTES
• Missed entire 2022 season recovering from Tommy John surgery on right elbow…
• Finished second in the 2020 American League Cy Young Award voting, accruing 92 total votes (Cleveland’s Shane Bieber was the unanimous winner).
• Named Joseph W. Haynes Award winner for Twins Pitcher of the Year in 2020, voted on by the Twin Cities Chapter of the BBWAA…also named the starting pitcher on 2020 All-MLB Second Team.
• Pitched 8.0 no-hit innings on August 18, 2020 vs. MIL before bid was broken up in the ninth…longest no-hit bid of career, and set Twins record with eight-straight K’s.
• Is the third Japanese-born player in Twins franchise history, after Micheal Nakamura (2003) and Tsuyoshi Nishioka (2011-12).
• Owns the fifth-most strikeouts in MLB history among Japanese-born pitchers.
• His 16 wins in 2016 were the second-most wins ever by a Los Angeles-NL rookie, behind only Rick Sutcliffe (17-10, 1979), and tied for the second-most ever in a single season by a Japanese pitcher.
• In 2016, led qualifying MLB rookie starting pitchers in starts (32), wins (16), opponents’ batting average (.229), WHIP (1.14), innings pitched (175.2) and strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.58).
• Named to the 2016 Baseball America Major League All-Rookie Team, and finished third in the NL Rookie of the Year voting.
